The past few weeks have been quite the nightmare in terms of natural disasters. As we all know, Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and most recently, Maria have had the most devastating effects over South Texas, Florida, the Caribbean Islands; with Puerto Rico possibly being the worst hit.
Unlike the other Caribbean islands, Puerto Rico was hit by a double tragedy. Barely a week after the hurricane Irma that affected the larger part of Caribbean islands, Puerto Rico was hit by another Hurricane Maria. The hurricane Maria has been described as the worst the country has seen in over a century. The devastating results of these events are worse that can be told.
I just had the chance to visit Rincon, Puerto Rico earlier this summer and, along with other friends of mine, I have not been able to reach any of my new friends or contacts there. Basically, nearly 80% of the country is without electricity or internet connection. The entire land has been swept and nearly all the food crops and foods stores have been damaged by water. The Hurricane is reported to have killed 16 people which are the known cases up to now. Puerto Rico faces a crisis due to lack of food, clean water, medical supplies, household supplies, and information media among others. The situation is worse because there is no way of passing information. The power grid destruction means that most people have no access to television, Radio or phones, making it difficult to pass information or for people to find each other. While there are so many questions about what our government is actually doing to help, what I do know is that the situation in Puerto Rico is dire and needs urgent humanitarian help and wherever we can stand up to do so, we should.
Photo Source: RT.com
I’m really proud to be partnered with Verizon where, for the past few months, I’ve not only been asked to share about my mobile lifestyle, but also able to learn more about the company and how they also give back to the communities that support them. They’ve been extremely generous in relief efforts for Hurricane Harvey and Irma through a $2.5 million dollar donation to Hand in Hand and as well as offering free data to Verizon customers in impacted areas of South Texas. In the wake of this devastation, Verizon recently announced support for the residents of Puerto Rico through a $1 million pledge to fund Hurricane Maria relief efforts through their partnership with the American Red Cross and World Vision. They’re working with local network operators, nonprofit partners and employees to assist the Puerto Rican people in rebuilding their lives. Additionally, in an effort to provide further financial support to residents of Puerto Rico, Verizon is matching employees’ contributions -dollar-for-dollar- to select hurricane relief-focused organizations! That’s just another reason why Better Matters!
How you can help support Puerto Rico
There are various other American and global organizations through which you can channel your support. Some of these organizations include UNICEF, Catholic Relief Services, Americares, Direct Relief, Save the Children, Center for Popular Democracy, Hispanic Federation’s “Unidos” page and International Medical Corps among others. All the money channeled to these organizations, no matter how little, will help restore Puerto Rico back to its feet.
What You Can Donate
Truth be told, Puerto Rico is currently in need of basically everything – ranging from food, clothing, sanitary supplies, and much more. You can donate food to various organizations that are offering humanitarian help in Puerto Rico. However, most of these organizations prefer money contribution which is then channeled to the regions where it is needed. The support by individuals is paramount considering the fact that, The American government has not offered any official support. People are also encouraged to avail themselves as volunteers and help in supply of foodstuff, clothing and sanitary materials.
How to pass around information
Additionally, Puerto Rico is in a serious need for people to help pass around information. With the entire country being in a blackout, there is no connection or media coverage. People can pass the word around to help the country gather more funding for the current crisis situation. The government of Puerto Rico has launched a platform through which people and companies can donate reconstruction materials -National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disasters (VOAD). All individuals can channel direct support to the government via this site. To pass around information, Facebook has created a safety check page for the families and the victims of Hurricane Maria. Anyone who was separated from their families can try to track them through this platform.
My girl Aaronica at The Crunchy Mommy also has a great list of ways you can help support Puerto Rico at this time. Check out her post here!
Last but not least, continue to pray. Pray for Puerto Rico and all of our fellow human beings whose lives, families, businesses, etc. have been impacted by this devastation!
*********************************************
Do you have any additional ways to support any Hurricane Relief Efforts in Puerto Rico? Share those below!
We certainly gave as much as possible and we continue to pray for all affected. My brother is still living with us, because the hurricanes took his home.
Oh no! I pray he finds a solution soon! I can’t even imagine!
Thank you for raising awareness on how we can help. It is heartbreaking to see the damage left behind by the hurricane. I will do my best to help out by donating. I think there is also a need to provide diapers and infant formula. I will let my family know so we can all donate together.
That’s very true. From what I hear, they need just about everything right now.
Thank you for sharing ways that we can help in Puerto Rico. It is devastating to see how much destruction is there. I pray that your contacts and everyone else can be located very soon.
Everything about this scenario makes me sad. Wishing for the best for Puerto Rico and am continuing to look into what I can do to help. Thank you for sharing your thoughts and suggestions!
It is very sad. I’m hoping we can all just gather our resources and help them out of this situation.
My heart is breaking for the people in Puerto Rico right now. I donated some supplies and will do more if I can 🙂
Thank you so much for sharing this information! The hurricane in Puerto Rico really wrecked that place. I think we should all do as much as we can to help.
Thank you for sharing how we call all help Puerto Rico recover. We are having a food and supply drive at my work.
This is an excellent resource for anyone who wants to help those affected by the hurricane in Puerto Rico. They got hit so hard down there!
These are some great suggestions. My heart breaks for those in Puerto Rico.
I can not believe the lack of assistance Puerto Rico has received. It breaks my heart and I appreciate you sharing ways we can help.
Glad to see that you are spreading awareness to let others know how they can help. Great job sharing this information, I hope it helps others see how they can truly help.
These are great suggestions! It’s great when we know how we can extend our help.
It’s so sad what has happened in Puerto Rico. Thanks for letting us know how we can help.
It’s heartbreaking to see the devastation caused by the hurricanes in Puerto Rico. These are all great ways to help. I am sure the people there appreciate anything that comes their way big or small, so we should all do our part to help them get back on their feet.
Regardless of who got hit, we have to make sure that we do our best to help out especially those that need it most. These are very good information.
If we all just gave a little, it would have such a huge impact. It is so important to give what you can and help those in need. I can’t imagine what they must be going through right now. How awful must it be to have everything you own torn away. Thanks for the tips.
The hubby and I have sent clothing, water etc to Puerto Rico and I’m glad that others are too. Great post thanks for sharing!
That’s awesome! They really need the help.
This is a great guide. They seriously need every little bit of aid they can get. Minimal access to clean drinking water and very little food are not problems that will go away without assistance.
I have several friends with family who havent had any communications yet. They need any and all help they can get right now.
What is going on in P.R, is breaking my heart. What the president is doing to help them is so disheartening we all should be giving them and the Caribbean more support.
Finding ways to help is important. I can’t even imagine how they’re feeling. I’m hoping some good is coming out of the dark, but I know it’s got to be a huge huge struggle.
It’s devastating and heart breaking to see the effects of the hurricane and it would be so nice to be able to help out. I’ve posted one for Florida as well. I think it’s really important that we spread the word as much as we can.
Thank you for posting this. I think in light of how the people of PR have been treated, this is so important. I am so glad to see how we can help these people get back on their feet.
Such a great post and thank you for using your voice to get this message across. Beyond upset whats going on over there!
It’s so sad what happened in Puerto Rico, but I think it’s great that you’re spreading the word. Thank you for sharing.